Always smiling brightly, she kept going, despite the names her classmates called her behind her back.

She was full of curiosity and independence, the extent of which I could only be jealous of. Even though she had all odds stacked against her, she knew what she wanted from life and pursued it, no matter the cost.

Sometimes we just have to live the fantasy in order to feel human again.

“It’s so peaceful out here,” she whispers.

“Yeah … I love it.”

“I just wish I could get up and stand under the trees. Just for a little while.”

I sit up and look at her, waiting until she opens her eyes. “Just standing or more?”

She smiles as she cocks her head towards me. “And maybe dance a little. If I could.”

The left side of my lips perk up into a smile. “You can.”

I get up from the bench, stand in front of her, and hold out both my hands.

“What are you doing?” she asks.

“Take my hands.”

“Why?” She looks at them tentatively.

“Just take them.”

It takes her a while to agree, probably because she’s scared. But there’s no reason to be. I won’t let her fall. I never will.

I pull her up into standing position.

“Hold onto me for support,” I say, and then take a step back until I’m so far back she has to come to me. “C’mon. Don’t be scared. I’m here.”

One, two, three. Hop. Her leg sways, but she stays put, putting every ounce of weight on my arms.

“Again,” I say, taking another step back and tugging her with me.

She goes along with it, taking another step of blind faith.

I never take my eyes off her as she continues to hop closer to me. Not even when we reach the center of the field. Leaves are scattered all around us, and when the wind blows a cascade of more leaves follow. Some drop on her head, making her giggle as she brushes them off.

Still, I can’t stop looking.

I’m no longer afraid or embarrassed about it.

I simply am … in love.

“What now?” she asks.

I pull her as close as I can so I can wrap both my arms around her. “Put your arms around my neck.”

She complies, her fingers lacing behind my neck. I can feel the warmth of her skin against mine, and as I soak in the heat of the sun I feel invigorated, strong. Strong enough to carry her across the ocean and back.

In one go I lift her up, her cheerful squeal creating goosebumps all over my body. Then I start to move my feet, one by one, until I’m no longer just walking … Until I’m dancing in a whirlwind of leaves … dancing with her in my arms.

The beauty of this place fades in comparison to her.

And even though I adore every inch of her presence, I do not deserve her.

But that doesn’t mean I can’t fulfill her dreams.

Her smile is wide, her teeth sparkling in the light of the sun. She looks so happy. Happier than I’ve ever seen her, and it fills me with something I’ve never experienced before. Hope.

After spinning and circling around for so many times, my head is getting dizzy, so I slowly come to a stop and admire the renewed look on her face. Her rosy cheeks. Her tousled hair floating in the wind. She leans away and grabs my hands as I pull her back to the seat once again.

Excerpt #2

As I walk out of the classroom door, I look through all the tiny little windows that line the wall of the gym class.

By accident, of course.

Obviously not because I know dance classes started there twenty minutes ago.

And most definitely not because I see her make a few twirls in a costume.

Every step I take is slower than the previous, until I’m sauntering as slow as a snail.

Because I’m tired, of course.

My hand touches the wall as my eyes refuse to let go of the image in front of me.

The way she swishes through the air, her feet light as feathers as they barely touch the ground, how her fingers twitch and her lips out while she performs the moves, the little quirks that are barely noticeable yet clearly there, and the grace with which she presents herself.

It has me completely enraptured.

So much so that I stumble over the first step of the stairs I forgot were there in the middle of the hallway.

I throw my backpack over my shoulder and run up the stairs, walking as far away from the gym as I possibly can until I find a table and chair in a corner of the school, which is where I sit down and stare ahead.

I watch the students come and go, none of them her.

Not that it matters. I shouldn’t even be thinking of her. It’s not like I could ever come close.

Like I’d ever be good enough for someone like her.

So I grab my books and throw them on the table, determined to finally not come home without having done my homework.

Ten minutes later, I’m completely frozen in place.

Not because of what I just read.

But because I smell her perfume … And when I look up and see her patched up Pucca bag, I feel the weight of the world pull me down.

From the corner of my eye I notice her walk to the lockers.

Goddammit, why did I forget the lockers were here? Of course she comes here after class.

I turn my head slowly, trying not to make it too obvious that I’m looking, but then I realize she’s not going to look my way. No one would if they saw what she saw.

Her first and last name, scribbled in permanent ink onto a total of three lockers, accompanied by the words ‘is a stupid bitch’.

She hesitates to open her locker, but then swallows away the fear as she pushes through. A dozen tiny papers come falling out and scatter on the ground. She picks one up, only to find it’s a picture of a potato … with her face below it.

Squinting, I can make out the text just underneath it.

Maybell Fairweather’s nose looks like a potato!

The longer she looks at it, the more sour her face turns, until that smile which I admire so much disappears into thin air, and all that’s left is the defeated look in her eyes as the tears start to gather.

She crumples up the paper and throws it in a bin, brushing away the single tear that rolls down her cheek. Then she starts to run.

Before I stand up to say something, she’s already long gone.

Stupid.

Stupid, stupid!

I mentally chastise myself, but it doesn’t help. It doesn’t make these bad feelings go away.

I’m always too late.

Too late to do anything. Too late to matter.

Too late to make a change.

AUTHOR BIO

Clarissa Wild is a New York Times & USA Today Bestselling author, best known for the dark Romance novel Mr. X. Her novels include the Fierce Series, the Delirious Series, Stalker Duology, Twenty-One (21), Ultimate Sin, VIKTOR, and Bad Teacher. She is also a writer of erotic romance such as the Blissful Series, The Billionaire's Bet series, and the Enflamed Series. She is an avid reader and writer of sexy stories about hot men and feisty women. Her other loves include her furry cat friend and learning about different cultures. In her free time she enjoys watching all sorts of movies, reading tons of books and cooking her favorite meals.

Code: A system of words, letters, figures or symbols used to represent others, especially for the purposes of secrecy.

Everything comes in twos. His and hers. Mine and yours. Love and hate. Life and death. The world is made up of pairs.

So what happens when the line is blurred, when the rules we use to define our lives become…skewed?

What happens when the rules are broken? His and hers becomes his, hers and…theirs. Mine and yours becomes mine, yours and ours. Love and hate become love, hate and conflict. Life and death become a battle, an infinite number of risks swinging on a pendulum.

Carter cracked my code. He dug deep into the genetics of who I was and he rewrote every moment of my life. He forced his way in, reshaping every thought in my head, manipulating every instinct that kept me alive.

Yet, in doing so he altered the structure of his own code and broke every single rule he lived by. He was the encryption I couldn’t decipher, and I was the mystery that finally forced him to reveal exactly who he was.

Rebecca is a London born and bred mother, writer and psychology student. She is the mother of a superhero (who is currently growing his hair like Thor!) and spends her days with her nose stuck in a textbook, her fingers tapping away at the keys…or she’s building forts and eating gummy bears.

She is the author of dark psychological romance. An avid reader and lover of stories that keep you guessing, Rebecca writes tales that will challenge your perceptions and toy with your emotions. Her stories invite you to open your mind and dig deeper into the meanings of the lives of each and every character you meet. She entices you into their world – to feel with them, grow with them, to love with them. She asks you to become a part of them and allow them to become a part of you.

D H Sidebottom is a full-time mum/author. She lives in Derbyshire, England with her children, four crazy dogs, a couple of cats and two pet rats, who keep her company in her cave.

She is an avid reader and her tastes range from horror to erotic, but she loves to help new authors get into the 'scene'. She has an obsession with the name Frank and can never work on just one book, usually writing 2 or 3 at the same time.

She loves rock music and tattooed guys, and has a weakness for coffee, wine and Belgian buns.

Dawn is currently busy in her cave working on several books, including a new dark collaboration.

Series by D H...

Heart of Stone/Nsc,

Room 103,

Blue Butterfly,

Judgement 8,

Devine,

Tainted Angels (paranormal),

Caged

Standalone Novels:

Dove

Night Fires.

Co-author (with Ker Dukey) of The Deception series and the dark stand alones I See You and Lost.

Oh wow. What an amazing story this is. I can't even begin to describe the feelings I got while reading this. My stomach was in knots and my head was in a spin.

These are two brilliant authors but when they got together and wrote this they wrote an amazingly dark and twisted well written story. They played with my brain cells. They messed with my head. They took my heart out and threw it about. I can't believe I actually cried while reading this. So many feels that I didn't expect while reading this.

Don't try guessing who wrote what- you won't succeed. These two authors are as warped as each other. If I didn't stalk them already I'd certainly be stalking them now.

As you can see I'm not writing about the storyline. The blurb gives enough of a teaser and I'm reluctant to spill any more. If you like dark and twisted reads then seriously you need to grab this book. It's an amazing read that you will not forget.

I'm off now to do something I've never done before. I'm going to re read this straight away before reading anything else. Yes it really is that good.

Two years after her husband’s death, Kelly believes her romantic life is done. Until she reconnects with her girlhood crush on social media, and as fate would have it, he lives across the street.

James is over the whole true-love thing. His grasping ex-wife tore that belief out of him, when she left him for a rich, old man. Then he finds out his first love moved to San Diego too, and their attraction burns as hot as ever.

What they don’t know is that Fate didn’t bring them together – the Guardian Angel Corps did, led by two unlikely Cupids – Kelly’s late husband and Zane, a rough and tumble, 19th century cowboy. When a Fallen Angel decides to tear Kelly and James apart, cherubs and harps aren’t going to cut it, and Zane’s unique skills might be just what they need to get a second chance at their first love.

#Author info:

After years working in the business world, my love of reading led me to get my MLS, and I currently work part-time in a school library, a job that allows me lots of time to explore my other love - writing romance! I live in Maryland, with my husband, who is my real-life romance hero. We both enjoy traveling to visit our far-flung family and friends, and spending time on the beach with an umbrella drink and a good book.

Add the book to Goodreads ➜ https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30988421-fate-forgotten

#Synopsis:

Valerie Matlock’s life revolves around her coven. Young and naïve, she knows little about the immortal war brewing until the night her coven is attacked. In the blink of an eye, the family she loves is gone. Devastated, she lays eyes on the angry demon warrior, Jacob Rhodes. A Guardian, he means her no harm, but she fears him as deeply as she craves him. She has to stay away. She just doesn’t know if she can.

The pain of Jacob’s losses have hardened him. He lives for revenge and uses anger like a shield, keeping everyone at arm’s length. He can’t risk losing more. Tragedy strikes, again, and he’s left caring for his four-year-old niece, Annie. The bright girl deserves better than him. But he can’t give her up, not ever. When he sets his eyes on his fated mate, the powerful witch, Valerie, his life gets twice as complicated. Will she accept him, a demon she fears and his adopted child?

J.L. Sheppard was born and raised in Miami, Florida where she still lives with her husband and son.

As a child, her greatest aspiration was to become a writer. She read often, kept a journal and wrote countless poems. She attended Florida International University and graduated in 2008 with a Bachelors in Communications. During her senior year, she interned at NBC Miami, WTVJ. Following the internship, she was hired and worked in the News Department for three years.

It wasn’t until 2011 that she set her heart and mind into writing her first completed novel, Demon King’s Desire, which was published in January of 2013.

Junkie and Jagger are Heather C. Leigh’s latest creation. The Broken Doll Series is a dark romance duet about a heroin addict who falls in love with the drug lord holding her captive and drops on September 13th!

Pre-order this highly anticipated release TODAY!

Junkie (Book One)

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/2bI47Mm

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/2bgZfye

Jagger (Book Two) Releases September 27th

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/2bcNfvW

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/2bKBKy0

BLURB OF JUNKIE

Blurb

I'm a heroin addict. A junkie. A whore. I'll do anything to get my next fix.

Anything.

Including walking right onto the property of Austin's most ruthless and feared drug lord to beg for some H. I don't know his name, only that people call him Boss. Oh, and that he won't think twice to put a bullet in my head.

But like I said, I'll do anything to get my next fix. Even if it costs me my life.

Or changes it forever.

Release Date: September 13th

Add to your TBR here: http://bit.ly/2bF0Lh8

BLURB OF JAGGER

Blurb

I sell drugs. Heroin to be specific. And I'm fucking good at my job. Enough to fight my way to the top position, controlling all of Austin's supply.

So what if I had to kill the previous boss to do it. I do what has to be done. Never cared about consequences because I never had anything to lose.

Until I met Miri. My doll. She's my weakness and somehow, my enemies found out about her.

If they hurt her, they will regret the day they ever heard my name. Boss. They call me Boss for a reason. What I say goes, including the price on the heads of anyone who dares to fuck with what belongs to me.

My Miri.

Release Date: September 27th

Add to your TBR here: http://bit.ly/2c0ldsb

Meet Heather Leigh

Heather C. Leigh is the author of the Amazon best selling Famous series. She likes to write about the 'dark' side of fame. The part that the public doesn't get to see, how difficult it is to live in a fishbowl and how that affects relationships.

Heather was born and raised in New England and currently lives outside Atlanta, GA with her husband, 2 kids, and French Bulldog, Shelby.

She loves the Red Sox, the Patriots, and anything chocolate (but not white chocolate, everyone knows it's not real chocolate so it doesn't count) and has left explicit instructions in her will to have her ashes snuck into Fenway Park and sneakily sprinkled all over while her family enjoys beer, hot dogs, and a wicked good time.

Monday, 29 August 2016

This is the third book in this series and what a great series it is. The series needs to be read in order to get the most of the story.

I was really looking forward to reading Rens story as we've met him previously and I certainly wasn't disappointed. This is Ren and Ella's story.

I truly loved this story. This is a hot and sexy read including bdsm. This author certainly knows how to push me out of my usual genre and I totally loved it. Looking forward to reading more from this author.